Batman Short Story: A Matter of Trust
by Tower of Babel
Summary: Trust is very important to a close knit family. And without it, the Batfamily would fall apart. So, when Jason and Tim break that trust, Dick and Damien decide to get even... (Sequel to my Batman short story: 'Written Fantasies').
1. Chapter 1

**A Matter of Trust**

( _A Batman Short Story - Part 1_ )

Within one of the deepest caverns of the Bat Cave complex, Jason Todd leaned against the bedrock wall and took a puff of his cigarette. He closed his eyes and savoured the flavour of the nicotine as he exhaled. Smoking helped him to relax when he was feeling self-conscious or stressed.

Bruce — Batman — had warned him not to smoke within the main area of the Bat Cave, and he abided by that rule. He had been told on a continuous bases that second-hand smoke kills, and since none of the others smoked, Bruce didn't want it near them.

Jason heeded his mentors demand and chose to smoke away from everyone, and he had his favourite spot — in an undeveloped part of the Bat Cave caverns. The Bat Cave was always expanding, but this part was only in its beginning stages and had just been carved out.

And yet, in retrospect, he had smoked ever since he was a kid, even before being Robin, even before meeting Bruce, so he continued to do so even after he had been resurrected in the Lazarus Pit. So what harm could it do him now?

Besides, it relaxed him, especially after the memories of being beaten by the Joker with a crowbar when he was Robin came flooding back. And when that happened, he needed to relax — and fast!

After he finished the cigarette, he returned to the others in the main area of the Bat Cave. Bruce was static at a workbench working on something alone — a new Batarang perhaps?; Tim was, as usual, engaged in something on the Batcomputer; and Dick and Damien, were — he wasn't quite sure what they were doing. But they were quiet and talking to themselves out of earshot in a seating area on a couch.

Jason strolled over to the ladder attached to the upper tier of the Batcomputer platform and climbed up. Here is joined Tim at the upper consoles. Tim had his back turned to him and Jason wandered over to see what the teen was doing.

Suddenly Tim waved a hand across his face and turned. "Back off, Jason, you smell like an ashtray."

"I smoke, deal with it," Jason retorted bluntly.

Jason immediately took notice of a some-what familiar looking device that was connected to the Batcomputer by a cord, giving it power or data transfer — Jason wasn't sure. On the screen, Tim was computing arithmetic algorithms that was beyond Jason's not so mathematical comprehension.

The device looked like your average parabolic radio dish but on a smaller handheld scale.

"What're you working on?" Jason asked.

Jason went to pick it up, but Tim denied him, and snatched first as if trying to keep a toy from being destroyed from a rival. Tim was notorious for designing new inventions and territorial for keeping them safe. And he often kept the best for himself to work with in the field.

"It's parabolic radio dish," Tim said. "It can pick up any low-bearing sound while filtering out atmospheric noise."

"Don't we have one of these? It's not new. We've used them in the field before, but let me guess…this is new and improved, right?"

Tim's eyes narrowed slightly. "Well, yes. And this new device is much more powerful. And it comes with a visor. You can listen to conversion and look through walls like x-ray vision."

"Can you also look through clothes? Don't try that with me, its laundry day. I'm going commando."

"Too much information, Jason," Tim said straightly.

Jason smirked. "Okay, kid, let's have a listen. Show me your brilliance."

"If you're going to mock me…" Tim turned back to the console. He had a tendency of being oversensitive and, on occasion, over-dramatic.

Jason rolled his eyes. "Okay, Tim. Please, can I have a try?"

Tim turned and smiled, apart from being touchy, he was also quick to forgive. Just like Dick. "Okay," he said, and gave Jason an ear piece, with a visor. He had created two sets. Tim mirrored Jason by putting on a visor and inserted an earpiece. He then picked up the parabolic dish and switched it on.

Jason clenched his teeth. "Too…much…ambient noise…" But Tim was in the middle of adjusting the controls, and within moments, the sound stabilized to a comfortable level. "Much better," he then said, and then listened. "Interesting, a wide variety of sounds I've never heard before. Quite eerie, to say the least, if you think about it."

"I know, right?" Tim answered. He had his eyes closed. It was almost soothing for him. "The screeching of bats, the sounds of dripping water through the bedrock like water falls, the hum of circuitry from the Batcomputer, and…"

"Tim, focus on them," Jason said. "I want to hear what Dick and Damien are saying."

Tim opened his eyes, and looked down at the pair in conversion on the other side of the cave on a couch. "They seem to be having a private conversation. Dick would be very angry of we eavesdropped."

"Our excuse if caught will be testing out your device."

Tim was hesitate, but he could never say no to the experimentation of one of his devices. Besides, what harm would a little eavesdropping do if it was for a good cause? He agreed, if only for a for moments.

"Okay, but not for very long," Tim said, and pointed the dish at the pair, and then focused the beam to pick up their conversion. But he stopped short at using the visors to picture them without clothes.

And they listened in.

x x x

Damien and Dick were seated together close, their conversion very engaging but private. Damien had asked to speak to Dick on a very personal matter, and Dick, the ever approachable one, and experienced one, agreed. Damien went to Dick first, because he didn't want Bruce, his father, to feel uncomfortable. A bond had been formed between Damien and Dick recently, and Dick felt like a second father to him. So, unlike his real father, so cold and harsh when it came to human emotions, Dick Grayson was not.

At first it was difficult to even get the words out, but Damien eventually opened up to Dick, and it was a good thing it was in a private venture, too, given the nature of the talk.

Dick Grayson smiled thin. "Damien, trust me, don't be embarrassed," Grayson said, after he had listened to the boy's concerns, "it happens to every guy, and to every boy at a certain age. You're not the first to experience it, and it will happen again. But stop reading Cat Woman's stories. They'll give you dreams, fantasies. After you lent me the USB you saved the stories on, even my eyes popped after reading some."

"I like to read them; they're intriguing, storying telling," Damien defended.

"I admit, Selina can write exceptionally well, and if she could — and I wish she would — I would hope she'd pick a better career choice than professional cat burglar," Dick said. "But those erotic stories were meant for Bruce, not for kids. They can warp your mind…worse than Jason."

"No one's mind if more warped than Todd's, given the circumstances of his resurrection," Damien agreed. He knew if Jason had heard that, he'd probably sneer, and call Damien some sort of name that referred to his short stature like tater-tot or short-stack or damn Hell Spawn.

"Jason has his own issues, but that's his business." Dick sighed. "Let me tell you a story…"

Dick leaned back and for a moment looked reflective, he looked up at the ceiling, and exhaled deeply. "When I was a member of the Bludhaven Police Department — Bruce installed me there to infiltrate the corruption he saw, and it was a chance for me to stretch my legs as Nightwing — I saw some weird things beyond the normal standard of crime fighting. In fact, I still have nightmares about it. The criminal that came to become my sworn enemy, Blockbuster — he made bodybuilders look small — despite his grotesque size and criminal standing — he never, ever, engaged in some of the worse of humanity I witnessed…" Dick took a moment, and closed his eyes. "Damien, there are some things even I thought human beings weren't capable of without superpowers and abilities. Human's can be very, very cruel to their fellows. And it sickens me still."

Dick put a hand to his mouth as if was about to vomit. Damien touched him on the shoulder, "Grayson — Are you okay?" he asked with compassion that normally was not Damien's forte. Damien observed Dick had not actually told him a story, more of a vague description of his past.

"I suddenly feel nauseous," Dick said, his eyes still closed. "How could humans do that to each other?" Dick seemed to be revisiting something he had witnessed without describing it. He went on to describe in his own way, if only vaguely, the way some people were so mentally disturbed and blood-thirsty that they deserved to be wiped from existence. And to be locked up in Arkham Asylum was too good for them. "There is evil, Damien, and then there is evil beyond evil."

Damien wondered what all this was about regarding his issue? But Grayson sometimes went off on a tangent, and often about nothing at all. Or, perhaps, he was relating Jason's mental instability to some of his past experiences? It was best to just let him get it out of his system.

Dick lurched over as if he about to vomit.

And suddenly something else happened and it was completely unexpected. Behind Grayson, masked somewhat within the cushions of the couch they sat on, a soft rumbling sounded.

Dick Grayson's eyes burst open. "Oops! Sorry, I didn't mean to do that."

Damien snorted with a little chuckle, then waved a hand across his face. "That is rank. The infallible Dick Grayson passed wind in my presence," he said humorously.

"Now you know why I have several Nightwing costumes," Dick joked. "Even I, the great Dick Grayson, get a little stressed out sometimes." Dick blinked, and waved a hand several times across his face. It was pretty rank. "Thanks for the understanding…and sorry about the smell."

Damien held his nose. "Like me and red meat," he said, and they both had a small laugh.

After a minute, Dick got a little more serious with Damien again. "Anyway, back to you. What happened was normal. Don't fret about it. But, if you have anymore dreams or if you just like to talk sometime — I know Bruce is not the best to talk to — come to me, and maybe I can help." Dick's voice got a little lower. "Between you and me, I enjoyed those stories too. I've read the story The Gentleman's Game twice! Selina has got exceptional talent."

A heavy sneeze echoed the Bat Cave, and Dick and Damien snapped their attention outward, and Dick instantly saw both Tim and Jason on the upper tier of the Batcomputer platform, with visors on and Tim holding what looked to be a parabolic radio dish. They weren't looking in their direction, but Dick could read lips, and Tim was saying, "Jason, you sounded like a Thunderclap. They'll hear us!"

Dick stood up, then Damien. Even Bruce looked up from his workbench. Tim had obviously seen their movement, and quickly snatched off his visor and tried to hide the parabolic radio dish. Dick knew exactly what that device was used for, and he frowned to think they had done what he thought they done.

Dick restrained himself from grabbing the nearest object to throw at the them, he had a very good Pitcher's arm. He leapt over the couch, and, with Damien in tow, crossed the distance to the lower tier.

"Damn it, guys! You better not have eavesdropped on us?" Dick demanded an answer.

Tim tried to act innocent. "We weren't, honest. I was — or rather we were — trying out a new device," he stammered. "We heard very little, nothing important…I mean…"

Jason smirked, putting his hands on the metal barriers than surrounded the upper tier, looking down at Dick. "He's right, nothing too juicy. But shall I call you Fartwing or Gassy Grayson for now on?"

Dick gritted his teeth, clenched his fists. "I'm going to send you into next week, you son of a —"

Bruce entered the fray, he looked confused. "What's going on here? What's happening?"

"They listened in on our private conversion, Bruce, with Tim's new device," Dick said, pointing at the parabolic radio dish. "That's a gross invasion of our privacy, especially here!"

"Honestly, it was all Jason's idea!" Tim said.

"Oh please, you were just as curious as I was," Jason said back. "Oh, and Damien, don't worry. Dickiebird is right, it's perfectly normal for pre-teens to wake up with a Bat-birdy in the nest." Jason snickered, then: "Especially after reading erotic fanfiction. I agree, Selina Kyle is an excellent writer."

Damien's face turned plum red. "I'LL KILL'EM! I'LL ABSOLUTELY KILL'EM!" Damien shouted in a rage and lunged for the ladder.

Dick immediately grabbed Damien and wrapped his arms around both his arms and chest, yanked him back. The boy struggled hard, but Dick managed to hold him back, with some considerable effort, holding him tightly to his body as the kid ravaged around.

"Let me go, Grayson! Let me go! I'm going to kill them both! Where's my sword?"

Bruce was angry. "Jason, Tim — come down here, right now!"

"Not with Damien like that," Jason said, pointing. "He's likely to scratch my eyes out."

"I'll do more than that! I'll cut off your balls and feed them to Titus!" Damien said enraged. Dick held onto Damien more tightly as he flayed around, the boy was stronger than he looked. He dragged Damien further from the ladder, as both Jason and Tim made their way down to the main floor.

"Damien, enough!" Bruce said. "Dick, pull him back!"

Dick complied. "Settle down, kid. Give it a break! You're not breaking free from me." Suddenly Damien began gnashing his teeth as if to bite Grayson. And Grayson has to squeeze tighter, his bipeds flexing hard to handle the kid. "I SAID ENOUGH, DAMIEN! COOL IT, NOW!"

Damien struggled with Dick's ever tightening grip and the scolding in his ears, but eventually relented and ended his fight. Dick eased up, but he did not let go. His arms clenched around Damien's arms and chest tightly enough to incapacitate him, the boy's legs dangling off the floor. Damien swore under his breath and Dick agreed with his sentiment.

Tim lowered his head apologetically. "Sorry Bruce, I never meant to hurt anymore. I was just testing out my new device and intruded on Dick and Damien's personal space." He looked at them and apologized. Damien spit at the floor like a snake spitting venom. And Tim understood Damien's anger.

Bruce gave Damien a stern look, and at Dick as well, to keep the boy under control.

Jason was less apologetic, stood straight, looked at Damien and Dick, said, "Okay, sorry squirt; Dickie. But don't take it too personally, we're family after all. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas."

A little bit of spittle seemed to drip from Damien's mouth as he gritted angry teeth.

Bruce gave Damien a cautionary finger which told him to cease his hostility, then turned back to Jason and Tim. He had the look of a man with stern disapproval. "I think you two need a time out," he said. "We are family, but we respect each others boundaries. Do I make myself clear?"

Tim immediately nodded and agreed, and Jason, even though he was a fully grown adult — he hated being spoken to like a child — understood he had crossed a line, and also agreed.

Alfred's voice suddenly echoed the Bat Cave, breaking the tension. "Forgive my interruption, sirs, but lunch is ready," the dapper butler of Wayne Manor said through the comm-system. "Please attend the Dining Hall."

"Thank you, Alfred," Bruce replied. "But only three of us will be attending. Jason and Tim won't be joining us."

"Really, sir? May I ask why?"

"I'll explain later."

"Understood."

Jason snorted, said, "Are you sending us to our rooms without supper, Bruce? We're not children."

"Shut-up, Jason," Tim scolded him. "Can't you see he's serious?"

Bruce eyed Jason with a father's contempt, and Jason was about to say something else, but thought best against it, and just looked away.

Bruce and the others then left, and took the elevator to the Manor above leaving the pair alone.

"You really did it this time, Jason," Tim said.

"Yeah, well…" Jason snorted. "Oh, to hell with it!"

Jason then took out a pack of smokes, struck up a cigarette, and then walked away, and headed back into the undeveloped caverns of the Bat Cave complex.

 ** _To be continued…_**


	2. Chapter 2

**A Matter of Trust**

(A Batman Short Story - Part 2)

An hour had passed and yet the others had not returned to the Bat Cave.

Tim was seated at the lower tier of the Batcomputer and tried to distract himself with some data pushing, but it wasn't working. He felt so rotten for what he'd done to Dick and Damien that he couldn't concentrate on anything tech related.

Jason, on the other hand, shortly after Bruce, Dick and Damien had left, had lit up another cigarette and left the main area, entering the adjacent undeveloped caverns of the Bat Cave. He hadn't returned either. And he seemed less apologetic than Tim. But even Jason knew when Dick was mad, it was serious.

When Bruce and Damien had their moods, Tim could handle them with an almost predictable nature, but when it came to Dick…that was another story. Although Dick was often more forgiving than most, like Tim's mother once said, the silent ones are normally the most scariest. It was when a person was so mad that they said nothing at all that drove someone to think of all the nasty consequences to happen.

When Dick Grayson got mad, he stayed mad for quite a while. He was usually an out-going and down-to-earth kind of guy, and even cracked a few jokes in the field to ease the tension when crime-fighting. But when something like this happened and Dick became mad, it was something to take very, very seriously.

And Tim was worried.

Dick Grayson took things personally, and Tim knew he had to apologize to both him and Damien for eavesdropping on their private conversion earlier, and mean it whole-heartedly.

Jason returned, exiting from a cave mouth. Where had he been all this time? Reflecting on his mistake or not-caring like he normally did?

Tim was seated in a chair next to the lower tier of the Batcomputer. He eyed Jason as he approached and tried to gage his mood. But he had to say what was on his mind. "We really screwed up!" he said. "And Bruce is really angry. And I'm not looking forward to Dick's silent treatment. You know how he gets!"

"Bah! Bruce has been pissed off worse than this," Jason said nonchalant. "As for Dick, let him fume. As for Damien, just keep the little ankle-biter at a distance for a while; he'll cool off." Tim than waved a hand over his nose as Jason approached closer. Jason put up a finger. "Don't you start! I'm not in the mood for an anti-smoking campaign. Bruce can't stand that I smoke."

"And I agree with him."

"When you die and come back, then we can talk. It helps me to relax."

Tim shook his head. "You're bizarre — you know that, Jason? You'd think being reborn would give you a perspective with a more positive outlook. But not you, you smoke and rush into battle with guns blazing like some sort of cowboy from the Old West. You were once a Catholic Priest. Where's your heart?"

"We're all bizarre, kid. We all have our quirks and life stories, and things never turn out how we imagine — no matter how hard we push," Jason said, and for a moment he seemed reflective. "But I'll tell ya a secret, and don't you dare blab this to Damien or he'd tease me about it, and I'll know where he got it from. I'm telling you because I trust you." He exhaled. "I've always been jealous of Dick Grayson."

"Really? How come?"

Jason frowned for a moment. "Joker has never been able to trick or twist Dick, but that laughing hyena has gotten under my skin a few times even after all of Bruce's mental training. Did you know, the clown even once compared me — Red Hood, to Dick — Nightwing, and called me the "Husky Robin". Jason's eyes narrowed with anger. "Tell me, do I look husky to you?"

"Was he comparing your body types? Well, think about it — Dick is more slender and tone because he grew up as a gymnast and acrobat in a circus. From what Bruce has told me from your days as Robin, you mostly concentrated on strength training and muscle development. Besides, we can't control our DNA, or bone structure. But look, you smoke and eat like a cow, and I've never seen Dick take a puff or eat anything heavy."

Jason looked perturbed. "Are you saying I look fat?"

Tim rolled his eyes. "No, what I'm saying is you have to work with what life gives you. People can change; they can break away from negativity; and leave their pass behind. But it takes dedication. Take me for instance, I left my disorderly father. Whenever he got drunk he'd like to beat me. I can't remember how many times I had to lie to my teachers at school when they found yet another bruise on me. I finally said enough, left, and found Bruce. Now I'm here, and I'm a member of a great team to help protect Gotham City. An odd twist of fate, and I don't regret a thing."

Jason nodded understandingly.

"You see, you just have to press on no matter what. I know what the Joker did to you was beyond cruel, beyond evil incarnate, and whether it was your human spirit that drove you to remain alive or divine intervention, you're with us today, and a valuable part of the team. We are family. A cohesive unit who care for each other very much. We have survived through countless battles with the Rogues and other deadly criminal fractions because we believe in each other — and it comes down to a matter of trust. Knowing when one of us is in trouble, the others will be there to help us no matter our differences. So, I really feel bad for what I did to Dick and Damien."

Jason nodded, then put his hands on Tim's shoulders and smiled. "You're right, Tim. And just for record, you're free of him — your father. He'll never hurt you again. As for me and the Joker, I still want to bash his brains in. But all in good time." Jason smiled, showing white teeth.

Tim tapped his temple with a finger. "My father will always be in here. And the anger I felt from Bruce earlier echoed that of my father. It worries me sometimes."

Jason straightened. "Tim, Bruce would never hurt you. Trust me on that. He and Dick have had some spouts and differences, but they always reconcile."

"Didn't Dick and Bruce beat the crap out of each other once here in the Bat Cave?"

"Yeah, Al told me about it. But it something to do between them from the past. But neither one of them would ever strike out in anger, and never at you." Jason then chuckled. "When it comes to me, on the other hand, I'm an ass, and both Bruce and Dick know it. Bruce is a control freak and it makes him feel powerless to know he can't control me any longer, as Red Hood and the leader of the Outsiders. So he gets Dick to bat me around sometimes in the field for kicks. It's all in good fun."

Tim smiled softly. "Thanks, Jay," and he wiped a tear from his eye. "You're a good brother. If ever I was in serious trouble, I'd know who'd to call to help me out." And Tim suddenly stood up and hugged Jason, wrapping his arms around his waste. "Thanks for being my brother."

Jason stood awe-struck and momentarily speechless. But then he patted Tim on the head, sharing a moment of affection with his adopted brother. "Maybe we should get them a gift — Dick and Damien — to say we're sorry," Jason sighed. "Dickie isn't the kind to hold a grudge, but the demon-seed will."

Tim agreed.

x x x

When Bruce, Dick and Damien finally returned to the Bat Cave, Tim was seated at the Batcomputer, like usual, but Jason was no where to be seen. Damien was still fuming and he kept muttering bloody murder rumblings under his breath as he eyed Tim Drake. Dick had settled him down mostly when they had lunch, but Damien's nature was to hold a grudge.

Tim observed Dick was smiling which kind of unnerved him. But Jason was right, Dick wasn't the kind of person to hold a grudge. He probably chilled out over the last hour. Tim also noticed Dick was carrying something, and in each hand he held two tall, plastic, nondescript cups with straws.

Dick walked straight to the Batcomputer. "Where Jason?" he asked

"He's…um…he went out," Tim said slightly nervous.

Just then, the roar of a motorcycle filled the Bat Cave as Red Hood drove in and parked. Jason had left thirty minutes ago to shop for an apology gift. Tim had agreed to stay in the Bat Cave and put his faith in Jason to get a worthy "I'm sorry" present. Jason pulled off his helmet and walked to the others.

"Where have you been?" Bruce asked. "And in costume?"

"Shopping," Jason said. "Wanted to apologize, and I knew words were not enough. So I bought a gift."

Damien crossed his arms. "It'll be a cold day in Hell before I accept an apology gift from you!"

"You can't buy our trust, Jason," Dick said. "You have to begin earning it again."

"Figured as much." Jason shrugged his shoulders. "Oh well, but I'm not surprised."

Dick extended his arms, said: "Here, an olive branch of sorts — protein smoothies. No one should go without a meal. And you'll both need your energy for patrols tonight."

Tim apologized again and took the cup Dick handed to him. He slipped the smoothie. "Strawberry? Delicious! This'll hit the spot for the energy I need tonight. Thanks, Dick!"

"Welcome," Dick said.

Jason took his smoothie and for a moment was hesitate. He looked at it strange. "Um, thanks, Dick." He looked at Grayson with an enquiring look. "You sure no hard feelings?"

"Damien and I spoke in length and we came to a consensus, we agreed accidents happen." Dick looked to Damien. Damien nodded. "Drink up, we go on patrol in ten minutes."

With his doubts relieved, Jason slipped on his smoothie. "Blueberry? Tastes great! Thanks, Dick!"

Tim hadn't eaten since breakfast, and it hadn't been much before coming down to the Bat Cave — a banana in milk with a little bit of sprinkled sugar on top — so he was hungry, and sucked on the straw to get maximum mouthful with each slip. And it tasted so good. It was like a favourite food you hadn't had in such a long time and you couldn't wait to devour it all at once.

But half way through his smoothie, Tim observed Damien had an odd smile on his face.

He stopped drinking and looked at the cup. He opened the lid and looked inside. It was a strawberry smoothie, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. They why was Damien smiling like that?

Suddenly his stomach gurgled, and he knew immediately it wasn't the sound one would hear when you were hungry — quite the opposite. It gurgled for a longer moment again, and he put a hand to his belly. He felt a pressure, one of gastrointestinal distress, and he knew what that meant.

"What did you put in my smoothie?" Tim demanded, and he looked directly at Damien.

Jason suddenly stopped drinking, he had gotten three-quarters down his smoothie. He looked at his own cup and then at Dick.

"I thought you didn't hold grudges?" Jason said. "What did you do? Did you spit in them?"

"That's gross," Dick said. "Why would you think that of me?"

"Then what do you put in them?" Jason suddenly felt the answer to his question and his eyes widened. He had been given a blueberry smoothie specifically to hide it and to allow it to dissolve unnoticed.

Damien cupped his hips with his hands. "Just a little payback," Damien answered. "Apologizes mean nothing without a lesson learned. Father and Grayson both taught me that."

Bruce looked at Damien and Dick. "Okay, what's going on? What did you two do?"

Tim pressed on his stomach, folded over, feeling an intense pressure from his bowels, he had to visit the bathroom and quickly. "I can't believe you would do something like this… _ohhh_! I told you I was sorry, and I meant it… _Ahhh_!…" His stomach gurgled fiercely. "You put me something in my smoothie. What?"

"Nothing dangerous, Tim," Dick explained. "You're a smart guy, hopefully you can solve this riddle if you have the time. And judging by how much you drank, your time is limited for an answer. Take your weight and height, then factor in speed and distance. How quickly can you can run to your on-suite bedroom bathroom? I have instructed Alfie to lock all the washrooms but yours. And the elevators have been shut off, so you must take the stairs. That's an extra-strength laxative — so you better run, Tim."

"I said I was sorry! You're such a… _Ohhhh_!" And Tim began to run, and run fast. He bolted up the stairs, holding his rear.

Jason stood in place. "You're a bastard, you know that right?"

Dick tilted his head and smiled. "You're looking a little stiff there, Jason. What's up?"

Jason gave Dick a hardened disdained stare. He attempted to reposition his pelvis, but it was a little difficult at the moment due a rising pressure in his trousers. "No hard feelings, eh? So, who gave you the viagra in put in my smoothie, huh?"

Bruce uncharacteristically burst out laughing.

"Stop laughing! This isn't funny, Bruce. It's very tight right now. I can't move. Did you have a hand in this?"

Bruce waved off his accusation, said: "I had nothing to do with this. This is between you four; straighten it out amongst yourselves."

Dick's smile had grown, and Damien had his classic crooked smirk plastered across his face.

"The two of you are rotten people!" Jason spat.

"Oh, I know you don't mean that, Jason," Dick said.

"I should've known you'd do something like this." Jason cringed. Things were getting even tighter. "I thought you were the forgiving brother. But you're just like him!" Jason pointed at Damien. "Trust me, I'll get my revenge!" His eyes seemed to roll momentarily in their sockets with the increasing pressure. "Normally, I wouldn't mind this. But you've spoiled the feeling with this trickery. If you'll excuse me, I have to change into something more loose fitting…"

Jason went to turn, and headed for the changing chamber.

Dick couldn't hold it in any longer and burst out laughing, as he watched Jason waddle like a penguin. He then gave Damien a high five. "Nice one, kid. I never you were knew you were so devious. Putting those mixtures into their smoothies was pure genius!"

"I bet they won't listen in on our conversions anymore after this," Damien replied.

"I can figure out where you got the laxative," Bruce said. "But I shudder where you got the viagra?"

"Let's just say I got it from a friend and leave it at that," Dick said, with a smile.

And Bruce gave him a curious, but accusatory look.

x x x

In the wake of the aftermath, after Tim had dropped his smoothie when he began running to the stairs to make it to the bathroom after giving an extra-strength laxative, his drink had spilled all over the floor. Even though it wasn't his fault, Damien was asked to clean up the mess, Damien grumbled under his breath as he cleaned it up with a mop and bucket, but in the end he had gotten his revenge on both Tim and Jason for their crime of eavesdropping on his private conversion with Grayson, and that was what counted most.

As Damien cleaned, he reluctantly overheard Grayson talking with his father about something, but he only half listened. When he turned to put away the cleaning supplies, he spotted an object on the floor a little ways off. It was where Jason had been standing just before he left to deal with his own results after drinking his smoothie mixed with viagra — that Damien had borrowed from his father's personal stash.

"If Tim makes a mess, neither I nor Alfred will clean it up, Dick. You will," Bruce said.

Dick said, "Aww, you're such a party-pooper, Bruce!"

Grayson and his father then went on to something else — something about tonight's patrols — but it was the object on the floor that grabbed Damien's real attention. Jason must have dropped it. Damien figured it must be the gift Jason had gone out shopping for.

Damien went over and picked it up. Wrapped in a red ribbon and bow, it was a rectangle box about nine inches in length and three inches in width. But there was only the one box. If Jason had gone shopping for gifts — plural — then why was there only the one box? Had he only bought for Grayson? He shook it, but whatever was inside must have been secured with cotton to prevent it from bouncing.

He went over to the pair talking. "Grayson, found this on the floor," and Damien handed it to him.

Dick took it in hand, looked at it, and turned it over. Then he saw the small card taped under the red bow. He plucked it off, and read it out loud. It said: "To Dick With Love!"

"Maybe Jason really is sorry?" Damien wondered. "Maybe I underestimated his sincerity?"

"This is not like Jason," Dick revealed. "Not the Jason I know…"

Dick then turned over the card. There was more writing in Jason's chicken scratch.

It said: "I'm sure you'll find this useful…AA's included."

Dick held the card in hand. "I'm reluctant to open the box. Knowing Jason, something will spring out like a jack-in-the box."

"Just open it," Damien said straightly.

Dick took off the bow and slowly untied the ribbon. Then he took a moment to brace himself and held it a little off to the right. If something did spring out, liquid or otherwise, Dick would quickly skirt out of the way. He also held it a little aloft and higher than Damien's stature. Whatever it was, he didn't want Damien to be hit with it either. Bruce was ready too, ever watchful, ever quick to respond…

Dick opened the box, and then immediately slammed it shut. "I'll kill'em! I'll absolutely kill'em!"

Bruce laughed more so than Dick had ever known him to do.

"Damn it! What is it? I couldn't see it. You closed the box too quickly, Grayson! I want to see it, too!"

Dick scowled, snapped a frown at Bruce. "Why are you laughing? It's not funny!"

"It's just like Jason to give you an 'apology gift' like that," Bruce said.

Frustrated, Damien whisked the box out of Dick's hand. Dick tried to snatch it back without success. Damien backed away from Dick, then opened it.

Inside was a long, smooth, blue and black device. Damien took it out of the box, and his eyes widened with a sudden uneasy embarrassment. He knew exactly what it was. And suddenly with the accidental press of a button it began to vibrate in his hand.

"What the—"

Damien dropped the box, and another small card toppled out that had been placed underneath the device. Grayson saw it, picked it up, and read it:

 ** _I know you too well, Grayson._**

 ** _I knew you wouldn't accept my apology, not this soon…_**

 ** _So here…_**

 ** _From one 'member' of the family to another:_**

 ** _…You're such a Dick!_**

And Bruce laughed even harder.

 **END.**


End file.
